The shoulder is one of the most important joints in the human body as it allows a wide range of motion, thus giving the arm the ability to function in any direction.

It is heavily involved in every person’s daily activities at home, at work, in entertainment, in amateur and even more so in professional sports: swimming, basketball, tennis, volleyball, throwing, etc.

Which people are affected by shoulder conditions?

“Shoulder conditions cause pain and limit range of motion, causing difficulty from simple daily activities to those related to occupation and lifestyle. They concern every age. Older patients present with arthritis, degenerative tendon tears, fractures, etc., while young patients and athletes present with dislocations, traumatic tendon tears, high-impact fractures (arm, clavicle, scapula), frozen shoulder, etc.” , emphasizes Dr. Ioannis X. Ferousis MD, PhD, Director of the Special Orthopedic Shoulder Surgery Clinic Metropolitan Hospital and adds. “Rehabilitating shoulder conditions is a complex process and surgically repairing them is particularly demanding and requires experience.”

Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty

Until recently, patients with severe osteoarthritis of the shoulder were treated with the classic and tried and tested total shoulder arthroplasty, which consists of replacing the anatomical elements of the joint (head and humerus) with a metal implant and a plastic insert respectively that “mimic” the normal anatomy and its biomechanics.
However, this operation, which is indicated for people with severe osteoarthritis of the shoulder, can only be applied in cases where the functionality of the rotator cuff (a series of tendons that serve to stabilize the shoulder during movement) is normal, which it doesn’t always happen. In several patients, the rotator cuff tendons have suffered a massive rupture, for reasons such as poor tissue quality, shrinkage and degeneration due to the chronicity of the damage.
“Reverse total arthroplasty is also indicated in situations where bone loss coexists, which is particularly common in shoulder arthritis, as well as in revisions of old shoulder arthroplasties whose results are not as expected, especially in fractures, old or recent . Reverse total shoulder arthroplasty is applied to these patients. This is a newer “non-anatomic philosophy” prosthesis that can be used in people suffering from severe osteoarthritis combined with poor rotator cuff function, but also to replace total arthroplasty after complications: loosening, infection, complex periprosthetic fractures, often in elderly patients, which cannot be treated with the osteosynthesis method”, explains the specialist.

How does the Inversion differ from the Classic Total Shoulder Arthroplasty

In general, Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty does what the name suggests, an anatomical reversal of the procedure.
“That is, the head (the ball) is replaced with a hollow polyethylene surface, while the humerus (the socket) is replaced with a metal ball. This creates a stable fulcrum that allows the patient to raise their arm without involving a problematic or damaged rotator cuff. Of course, these changes are not visible from the outside and do not cause a cosmetic problem.
This operation is the biggest development in recent years in shoulder surgery and one of the biggest in orthopedic surgery in general. It has a predictable result: significant restoration of shoulder mobility with usually complete elimination of pain, requires a short period of hospitalization (1-2 days), while, under appropriate supervision/guidance, the patient begins to mobilize the joint one week after the operation, reaching a very good mobility after one month”, concludes Dr. Ferousis.

The Specialist Orthopedic Shoulder Surgery Clinic of the Metropolitan Hospital

The first and to date unique Shoulder Surgery Unit of the NHS, was founded by Dr. Ioannis X. Ferousi, which under his direction became a center of reference in shoulder surgery treating complex shoulder conditions daily for over 30 years. The collaboration with the Metropolitan Hospital created the new model clinic of the Special Orthopedic Shoulder Surgery Clinic. Thanks to the combination of an excellent team of Doctors and the logistical infrastructure provided at every level by the Metropolitan Hospital, it is ready, in addition to orthopedic diseases in general, to deal with all the complex and complicated diseases of the Ohmic Zone, whether they are related to trauma or chronic, degenerative diseases, having the rare qualification of being a point of reference in shoulder surgery in Greece, already from the moment of its creation. And of course one of the most modern techniques applied in the Clinic is Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty.